Shane offered her a slice of pizza but her stomach lurched and she shook her head and turned away from him. She knew he was confused by her emotional withdrawal but no matter how often Alex tried to take the blame, this was her fault. She’d spoken to this man. He’d looked her in the eye and smiled.

She had a crick in her neck and her lower back ached from hours in the chair, but she couldn’t leave. She needed to catch him. Needed to put him behind bars. Had to help find Laura before it was too late.

Alex was on the dark web signed in to one of his bad guy personas.

He was typing fast.

“Alex?” Ashley’s voice rose in warning. “What are you doing?” The woman looked pale and tired.

Her boss’s mouth was grim.

“Oh shit.” Ashley closed her eyes and let out a big sigh.

Yael’s mouth parched when she saw what he’d posted into a forum that regularly talked about these and other crimes.

Alex had accused EG of setting up a fake show. That there was no way EG could have escaped the cops last time if it really was live and that the voting system was rigged. EG was stealing his money and he wanted a refund.

Alex looked up and held Ashley’s gaze. “Do you really think he will be any crueler to her simply because I call him out?”

The agent shook her head reluctantly. “Might have been useful to run it past the profilers first.”

“I did.”

Ashley grunted.

“Frazer agreed we have nothing to lose at this stage and, if we get lucky, EG might get angry or be arrogant enough that he makes a mistake.”

“But it’s not you he’ll be angry with,” Yael protested. “It’s Laura.”

“Look.” Ashley put the screen onto a monitor they could all see. “He’s online.”

Yael started tracking where the information was coming from but the guy was using a much more sophisticated VPN this time. One that would take time to hack. But she was good too. She needed to prove it.

Evi1Geni-us: “Crippen” works for the FBI. His real name is Alex Parker and he has a cybersecurity firm if anyone wants to take a crack at his business. If you’re wondering how I know that, it’s because one of his employees will be my next special guest. And, yes, last time I recorded the fun so I could leave a surprise for the cops—which you all got to watch as a free bonus, so stop complaining motherfuckers. This time I’ll prove it’s live so come with your own ideas for making her scream. She’s a pretty one. I’ll take my time with her. The FBI won’t find me. She’ll die and they’ll watch. You pay and I’ll play.